Orthostat of King Bar-Rakib (744-727 BCE)
Excavated at Zincirli (ancient Sam’al), Turkey
Vorderasiatisches Museum, Berlin VA 2817
From the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin website:
This orthostat from the Northern Hall of the city of Sam’al belongs to a group of relief-sculpted stone plaques that represent scenes of the life to come. The relief depicts the lord seated on a throne, with an official standing before him seeming to take instructions. A fly whisk-carrier behind the throne is visible only from the side.
Bar-Rakib holds in his left hand a symbol of rulership with a palmette top, and the right hand is slightly raised. The scribe carries under his left arm the bound writing-tablets and in his last hand a container in which scribal implements are kept. The beard and hairstyle of the king are indebted to the Assyrian fashion, by which he signals his vassal status to the Assyrian ruler. The headgear of the enthroned king, a smooth cap with raised side-flap and tassel, and the standing figure’s long garment portray the local dress. Because the smooth garment is only flatly carved, like the footwear, the zones of bare body and the headgear would be scarcely differentiated, were it not for the careful working of the heads and the details of the throne, footstool, and hems of garments. Archaeological finds confirm that these depict wooden pieces of furniture with metal decorative elements of copper or bronze.
The one-line Aramaic inscription is inscribed on the upper part of the picture. The text next to the ruler’s head proclaims: “I am Bar-Rakib, son of Panammuwa,” right next to the astral symbol reads: “My lord, Ba’al-Harran.” This “Lord of Harran” is identifiable with the moon god, depicted as a moon-disc and crescent, which are fitted with a small handle with grip and pommel.
